How this Indian Couple Navigated a Complex Visa System to Travel the World

As an American, it’s easy for me to travel the world. My dollar goes far (though not as far as it used to), and I only have to worry about visas to a few countries around the world. Yet not everyone is blessed with a golden passport (EU, British, Canadian, Australian, and New Zealand passports fall under this description, too), and it can be very hard to not only save money for travel but also obtain a visa to most countries around the world. And so today, we talk to Vikram and Ishwinder, an Indian couple who not only managed to save money for their round-the-world trip but also navigated the tough process of getting tourist visas with an Indian passport.

Nomadic Matt: Tell everyone about yourselves!Vikram: We are an Indian couple in our late 20s that loves to travel. I am from a city called Aurangabad, close to Mumbai, while Ishwinder is from New Delhi. We were both working in London when we decided to get married in January 2012. Within a year we decided to quit our jobs, sell what little we owned, and travel the world. We have been on the road for 15 months now. We have traveled to 25 countries and want to travel until the last bit of our savings runs out. We started Empty Rucksack to share our experiences and send our love and inspiration to people who also dream of travel.

What inspired this big trip?
Ishwinder worked for a consulting firm while I worked as a software engineer. Stable jobs provided us the funds to travel, but we always had to rush and return to our desks on Monday. We always found ourselves wanting to stay a little longer and not be dictated by the calendar. The more we traveled on weekends and short holidays, the more we wanted to travel longer. The tipping point was when we were hiking in Wales, climbing to the top of Snowdon. It was a Sunday so it was pretty crowded. We never saw a more crowded mountaintop than Snowdon. People were scrambling to step on the peak. We kept wondering what it would be like to come here on an off-peak day and have all this beauty to just ourselves. That was when we decided to quit our jobs and travel long term.

As Indians, do you find getting visas hard? What are some of the difficulties you face?
My visa has been rejected three times by Belgium, Spain, and United States, though Ishwinder has never had her visa rejected. Visa requirements are a necessary dimension we have to consider when we are planning to travel to a new country, and we can’t afford to be ignorant about it. Most times they require proof of funds, bank statements, income tax returns, return tickets, hotel bookings, and letters from employers, and some even ask for cover letters.

Do visa requirements keep you from visiting certain countries?
Visa requirements do not prevent us from visiting any country. The restrictions only make the process tiring, which ends up discouraging most people from applying. If we have to apply for a tourist visa for any Schengen country (most European countries), we would need to provide income tax returns, bank statements, and return tickets. The immigration officers are very strict, so any shortcomings in paperwork are not tolerated. One of my visa applications was rejected because I did not have enough blank pages in my passport. Such restrictions discourage spontaneous travel.

How do you go about making the application process successful?
There is no shortcut or simple way to making a successful application. All you do is read the immigration website thoroughly for the all the required paperwork. Then you follow all the guidelines and paperwork to the letter. Make sure you don’t overlook anything. Any mistake is just an excuse for them to deny your application. They aren’t very lenient.

Most common requirements include return flights, a certain [amount] of money in your bank accounts for a period of time, and hotel bookings. Websites like Booking.com allow hotel bookings with no fees and allow cancellations until the last minute. If you are in England and planning to travel to the EU, then bus tickets are the cheapest option for showing return tickets; you can book some as low as 10 GBP. We keep a separate account in which we keep a certain amount of money to show immigration officials that we have sufficient funds.

Even if you meet all the necessary requirements and have all your paperwork ready, you should still be prepared to accept rejection.

What countries are easier for Indians to get visas from?
We can visit Bhutan and Nepal without a visa, as well as Sri Lanka, the Maldives, and Mauritius, and countries in Southeast Asia are fairly easy to travel to since most of them offer visas on arrival. Based on Internet research, countries in South and Central America also seem visa friendly for Indians. Having a UK, US, or Schengen [visa] is also helpful, as it makes us eligible for visas on arrival for certain other countries. (Having a UK visa allowed us to get a visa on arrival in Turkey.)

Is there an interview process? How does that go? How hard is it to get a UK, EU, or US visa?
The visa process for US is fairly complicated. You make a payment, receive a code, and use it to book an appointment. When you go to the embassy, they check your paperwork and you are interviewed. They keep your passports only if they are going to issue you a visa; else they return the papers making it clear that the visa is being denied. It’s a country that seems that it doesn’t welcome tourism from India and is the toughest visa to get.

UK and EU applications are made through a third-party agency. Most people in India still live under the impression that applying through an agent increases your chances of getting a visa. If you have the funds to travel and the proper paperwork (leave approved by employer, bank statements, bookings, and tax returns), you will most likely get the visa.

What did you do to save up for your trip?
Both of us finished college and started working immediately. I worked seven years, and Ishwinder worked about six years before we decided to quit. The major chunk of our saving was from the two years we worked in London.

How do you stick to a budget when you travel?
Since we have been traveling around in Southeast Asia, India, Nepal, and Bhutan, we have not had to watch our budget that much. The only rule with us is “don’t splurge.” In the past 15 months there have been no expensive dinners, spas, shopping binges, or overpriced adventure sports. But when we arrive in a place, we look for a clean and airy room and don’t mind paying a little extra for that. Sticking to the basics keeps us on budget.

I get a lot of emails from Indians saying “travel is different for them.” Is that true? Has traveling changed your perspective on everything? What would you tell people/friends back home?
A lot of people think it’s a waste of time and money and that travel should be done once or twice a year. Long-term travel is still unheard of. A reason for this is that so many of us have [such] limited opportunities that job security is a concern, so you can’t quit your job and go travel. The most important thing is to secure your future. Indian society does not accept risk-taking, and that is what traveling long term is: a big risk.

Besides, if you are single, your family is preoccupied with getting you married. If you are married, there is a lot of societal expectation for you to have a baby. Spending time with family and being present at social functions is supremely important.

We were able to save money because we had good jobs in London and we didn’t want to buy a house or a car, and our families were much more understanding than most people. But I think even if we had been in India we would still have been able to quit and travel, but we would have needed two more years of saving. The only thing is with those savings we would not have been able to travel to Europe.

What is one thing you know now that you wish you knew when you started traveling?
Besides all the fun things about traveling, I wish we had known that traveling long term and not eating a proper diet could really affect your health in mysterious ways. Ishwinder suffered from a severe throat infection for four months and is still recovering from it. The thing that did the most damage was the improper medication she took. You must never treat yourself with medications you carry in your rucksack. It is worth spending money for medical checkups when you are abroad. But we have been hanging out at nature cure centers and yoga ashrams and are feeling a little better now. It’s important to slow down and take care of yourself.

*********************

It may be harder for Indian citizens to travel and obtain visas, but it’s not impossible. I’ve met many Indian travelers on the road, and as Vikram and Ishwinder’s story shows, it’s possible to successfully get visas. Maybe not to everywhere, but for enough places to keep you traveling for a while. For more, visit Vikram and Ishwinder at their blog, Empty Rucksack.

Become the Next Success Story

One of my favorite parts about this job is hearing people’s travel stories. They inspire me, but more importantly, they also inspire you. I travel a certain way, but there are many ways to fund your trips and travel the world. I hope these stories show you that there is more than one way to travel and that is within your grasp to reach your travel goals. Here are some more examples of people who made their travel dreams come true:

Job security!!!That’s threes only thing which holds me back from quitting and travel around. I wonder what thought process people go through when they decide to quit job and travel. What after return? What if any monetary emergency at home? Are most of the westerners whotake this step by some way protectedby their government policies and less family bonding?
Mrs and mrs Vikram may God bless you to cover all countries :).

I have been a long follower of your website but a lurker and I would like to thank you at the onset for all the valuable advice. For example I was in Budapest last week and enjoyed Hungarian folk dance thoroughly!!
On this topic, yes it is hard for Indians to roam as freely as others that you but its possible. We just need more preparation when it comes to visa. And although travel is a dream for everybody, the common misconception is it is risky, expensive, uncertain. I started out on my journey this month with a 15 day solo tour of Europe – Lisbon to Budapest and loved every minute of it. I would add being a solo traveler is even more unusual for indians!!!

One thing I would like to emphasize is if one has a US(I live in Pittsburgh),UK or schengen visa, doors open a bit easily 😉

Europe is so much fun, we always end up traveling slow, so lisbon to Budapest for us would take over 2 months.
We hope things would change soon and travelling will be more in the spur of the moment for Indians rather than endless planning.

As a Indian, I have visa stamped from 14 Countries, though EU & US Visa’s are valuable to flex across given union, there are still territories like Serbia, Bosnia, Kosovo in EU which in-spite being in European continent need’s individual visas. Moreover this countries allow free access to countries which are lower in comparison to India in terms economically. Standards or what so they measure.

Which brings me into that Indian government hasn’t engage our reluctant into forming bilateral treaties with this countries. It’s true as mentioned world is free, Only political boundaries carved by human’s restrain and many times discourage to Travel.

Countries such as Bulgaria,Turkey, Croatia and recently from Feb 1, 2014 Romania allows Indian PP holders to Travel and Stay for 90 days if in possession on Schengen long term Visa’s. As a tourist it not only helps me in terms of saving visa fees and repeated trips to Embassy but on the other end it encourages me as a outbound tourist in spending in their economy.

During my Recent Visit to ITB Berling Tourism Trade Fair, few pavilions had Boucher’s only in German language when asked where I can get more info in English, Since I don’t see your country participating in Trade fairs in India, or even Dubai, Abu Dhabi. She shrugged her shoulder’s.

India and China in last decade has raised millions out of poverty. The extra income at their disposal has led many to Travel. Inspite stories such as from Vikram and Ishwinder’s in visa issues are inevitable.

Well I know this is coming from a frustrated Traveller, but who know’s what lies in agenda’s of Foreign immigration office.

Coming from Poland I can understand both of them and admire them for a lot for their patience with the awful bureaucracy. It isn’t as extreme for me, but I still found myself in situations when I was denied a Visa or had to try my ways around just to be able to visit some country. Luckily the situation changes for better from year to year, and recently I even got approved for a Work and Travel Visa for New Zealand even tho only 100 polish citizens a year get this opportunity, which proves that it is worth trying!

I knew how lucky we were to have NZ passports (though not so lucky with the NZD, goes far in less developed nations but falls over in comparison to many of the western countries we wanted to visit). The only places we had to get visas for were Cambodia and Vietnam, I cannot imagine having to worry about visas for every place we went.

Great post guys! You nailed it when you explained the expectations Indian society tends to have of a young person.

With an Indian passport and a visa to more than a few Western countries, I have looked upon the visa process as something akin to presenting a case – give them all the documents they ask for, and then some. It gets easier after those initial stamps on the passport.

Congratulations on meeting some of the unique challenges associated with traveling on Indian visas. I am American but have been traveling for a year with my Ghanaian girl friend in S.E. Asia and now Ecuador. Getting visas for most African countries citizens in almost all countries is very difficult. I think your having bank accounts and letters from employers makes a huge difference.

First of all, congratulations to Vikram and Ishvinder. My best wishes for you to travel the whole world at your pace and enjoy the journey. Yes, you are so 100% right in explaining the issues that 99% of us indians face..marraige, job security, kids, family, social life and the list will go on and on which all indians will only understand truly. Plus the menace of Visa, which is really a big pain for us indians. So many times i have planned some country and dropped it due to the time consuming visa process. I still fail to understand how some small countries are not realising the economic potential of tourism they can exploit if they allow easy access to millions of middle class indians who are really eager to see and explore new places. Recently, i was planning a trip to some 5 Central asian countrien along the old silk route. I was really disappointed to know that even these countries ask for so many formalities and are so bureaucratic to grant visas. And yes, many times when i get to meet foreigners in flights and other places i always tell them how lucky they are to have those golden passports which they many times take for granted. Anyways, this was a nice read and very happy to see my countrymen going far and enjoying the road! Cheers! 🙂

Thank you so much for sharing this story. I am Kenyan and I also have many visa issues and I was feeling very discouraged. Thank you Vikram and Ishwinder for sharing and encouraging the rest of us. Happy Travels!

Matt please include more stories like this of Non- Western Citizens travelling. It is so encouraging!

Well done you guys and what an inspiring story. I’m a British person so the world is pretty much open to me but I’m so pleased that you continue to live the life you want to lead regardless of the difficulties. Good on you!

Excellent post! I agree with Vikram, in India travel has still not caught on as an important outlet…because of the risks involved..people would rather choose a movie or a sport (read Cricket) over spending time on travel.

Posts like this do highlight how unfair this passport lottery game is. Having lived in Mexico, I have Mexican friends who have told me about all the hoops they have to jump through just to come to Europe or go to the States – it’s crazy. I wouldn’t like to do it myself. As a Briton, when on the Turkish border last year I was one of only three people on my train (along with two Dutch girls) who had to pay for a visa on arrival. It seemed like discrimination on a bizarre and utterly arbitrary basis, as the people I was travelling with (Lithuanian, French, German) had no requisites, but I did.

Oh, and on a last note – I’d just like to point out that while a British passport is not a Schengen passport, it IS an EU passport. Apparently anti-EU sentiment is so high amongst my compatriots that even people from other countries have forgotten we’re part of the Union!
Jonny

Excellent blog! and I can relate to it very well, being Bolivian I also face with the adversities of getting visas to everywhere (mainly US, UK and EU) with a bolivian passport you can only get to neighbouring countries in south america, then its visa for everywhere you want to go. I have traveled a lot and never got a visa rejected but still each time I have to apply I can´t avoid to think about he probabilities of being rejected (I´ve never been very stable with jobs and I´m young and not married, which embassies see as a very good prospect for migrating to other countries) I´m still savouring that bitter rejection of my Aunt´s US visa application, which whom I intended to travel as a recognition for everything she´s done to help me (like a mother), now she´s with health problems and it´s unlikely that she´ll be fit to travel in the future… it´s SO unfair!

Wow, what an inspiration! Here I am, as a US Passport holder, complaining about having to get a few visas and the expense of air fare. There is a lottery of birth and we who have it easier should realize that and try and give back.

They did the Khardung La pass on a motorcycle, too, that’s so cool! An Indian friend of mine suggested doing that since I already ride.

Wow, I had no idea it was that hard for a person from India to get visas to some countries. That sucks. But I am so glad you guys found way to make this work! You will be an inspiration to a lot of people. 🙂

A nice article. Empty Rucksack if you think its tough getting a visa on an Indian passport try doing that on a Pakistani passport lol. I have been living and working in the UK for the past two years and have travelled to Europe twice but my visa was still rejected by the Austrian embassy. You are right when you say that the officers at the embassy are looking for an excuse to refuse visa to third world nationals because they consider us potential immigrants.
Job security is another issue and you’re right when you say that people consider long time travel a waste of time and money. Long term travel is still a western concept in Pakistan and India.

You have given me not just great tips, but a great motivation to push through with my dreams of traveling around the world! There are several countries which are kinda very strict with who they give visas to but thanks to this article, I think I’ll just have to go and try again!

I was so ignorant about this sort of thing up until about a year ago. I didn’t even know that not everybody could just get up and travel where they want to travel. I’m Canadian so I have never had an issue with this. I’m glad that this hasn’t discouraged you from travelling and enjoying all that the world has to offer.

Great tips to getting visa & passport that is which is essential need to visit there from anywhere of the world. I’m so glad to read your nice content that you’ve appreciated as far as possible for all traveler who want to be a part of Canada!!

I am European and my husband is Indian. We’ve been traveling for more than 2 years and you can’t imagine how different our visa experiences are! I am happy to see other Indian travelers overcome the hardships that the Indian passport might represent in some countries, and go ahead with their travels and dreams anyway!

For other Indians interested in info regarding tourist visas for Indians around the world (particularly South American countries) my husband runs this “Visas for Indians” section on our blog: http://bkpk.me/category/visas/

Sorry for the shameful promotion, but I thought many other Indian travelers reading this post and commenting would find this useful! 🙂

Wow… thanks a lot!!
Although this is a late comment, I really appreciate the help. As an Indian, I was brainwashed from the childhood days of how I should secure my future beforehand! After seeing many movies, visiting US as a summer intern, visiting Japan as a solo traveller, I came to realize that I’ve not lived my life at all till now!
Currently I still have a job at amazon with a mediocre income(compared to other countries). But I really want to expand my horizons and get to know more about the real ME 🙂
Even after my enlightenment, I was worried about the visa procedures and such. Your husband’s blog will really help me plan my travels a little efficiently. Thanks a ton!
But I have one question for all the travelers who quit their jobs!
How will you hide your unemployment fact from visa officials? Does having enough money in the bank account and return flight tickets alone suffice without job proof?

Nice to hear a positive story like this. Fortunately I have been blessed with one of the “Golden Passports” but I feel for some of the travellers I met along the way who can’t travel to the countries they really want to see. In particular, I have met many Russians and Chinese, who were extremely interesting people, and great travellers, but they were constantly facing torturous processes for applying for visas for certain countries. I feel for them, but am glad to see Vikram and Ishwinder fullfill their dream!

What an inspiring story – I’m not sure that I’d be as patient as Vikram and Ishwinder if I had to provide bank statements every time I wanted to visit a new country. Kudos to them for showing everyone that it’s possible!

Ishwinder and Vikram, you guys rock! Keep doing what you’re doing. It’s not quite the same thing, but where I live (Southern US) it’s also relatively unheard of for people to travel long-term/quit their jobs to travel; most people here just get married and have kids young, and stay in their hometown. This sure makes me glad I have one of those “golden passports”! But it also makes me angry that there are people like you guys that have such trouble traveling when you want to, and Americans who could travel almost anywhere and refuse to. And here I was, also, complaining about the visa for China being so expensive and not worth the effort… I don’t know if I would have traveled half as much as I have if it was that much of a pain in the butt for every country, so definite kudos!

Hi Vikram & Ishwinder. I can see you’ve got this great passion for travel … and you guys being a couple just makes it all the more fun. 25 countries you’ve been to and counting … Isn’t it grand to have the freedom to travel? Ok … so there’s a little hassle getting visas from some countries. You’re not going to let a small thing like that ruin your planned trips .. right?

Great work Vikram and Ishwinder. I am an Indian with a dream to travel around the world but having an Indian passport is a big trouble. I am currently in US but still had to apply for a visa to enter Bahamas. I am planning to go on a student visit to UK but not able to enter France without a visa.

I wish India would allow dual nationality atleast. So I could try and get another nationality and enjoy the freedom.

Hello, you said you left your job to travel the world. I did the same too however; I just don’t know how to justify that I am still going back to my home country. I don’t have land titles nor business. Please help. ?

You are lucky guys. Living my dream life. I have a question if you can reply. I am a doctor and pursing my post graduation in India which is salaried (got my PG 4 months back before which I was doing preparation for the PG entrance exam so no salary) I am going to pay my income tax return first time for this year. I wanted to ho to travel to Europe and will have to get travel visa (schengen)
Will it create problem as I don’t have my income tax returns acknowledgement? I have my pay slips and sufficient balance in my bank account. Have my pan card and credit card too

Hi. Thank you for the blog! It inspired me a lot, and I do want to quit my job and travel as well, but I am just very curious. You said that in order for you to get a Schengen Visa you need to submit your Income Tax Return, Payslips and your Leave Approval from your employer, but you have quit your jobs right? And you said that you need to submit all those requirements because the embassy are not very lenient. How did you get a visa Approved by the EU embassy? ?? What did you submit in replacement for those requirements I mentioned??Please help. Thank you!

Wow! Interesting to read how you guys quit your job and travel! Being an Indian myself, I have been able to travel to 10+ countries while holding my job. Although I’m not a big advocate of the whole quitting thing, it’s interesting to see your perspective. End of the day you need to be happy – Glad to see you guys are enjoying. Happy Travels! 🙂

currently i dont own a job from past 6 months, but to apply for visa, they require letter from employer, so now, how to apply. i am holding off from travel just for this. In your case, i am curious to know how could you manage to get the letter from employer for the visa, even after quitting your job. Please help me on this.

Hi, My name is Indrajit Singha and I’m from Pune,India. I am looking to apply for a Schengen tourist visa for both myself and my wife as we are planning to go to Italy and Switzerland in September 2016 for a total period of 14 days(7 nights Italy and 6 night Switzerland and last day for the return flight).

But,In the document requirements for the schengen tourist visa for Italy, it is mentioned to provide the Leave Approval letter from Employer. But my organisation do not have the policy to give such letters for personal visit.

So can you please let me know if it is OK to provide with other supporting documents in this respect for myself like Employer Appointment letter, Last pay Revision letter this year, Salary slipsffor last 6 months, Self Property Title Deed, Joint Property title deed with parent ,marriage certificate etc .
Also please let me know the document requirements for my wife. Thanks a lot in advance for your understanding and kind feedback.

Hi, you said you left your job to travel the world. I did the same too however; I just don’t know how to justify that I am still going back to my home country. I don’t have land titles nor business. Please help. ?